Wednesday 22 February 2017 18:40, UK
St Etienne boss Christophe Galtier insists his side can overcome a 3-0 deficit in their Europa League decider with Manchester United - and reckons Zlatan Ibrahimovic got lucky in the first leg.
But Galtier has not given up hope of what would be a stunning comeback and played down the threat posed by the Swede, despite his match-winning contribution in Manchester.
"We managed to keep him quiet at Old Trafford," Galtier told reporters ahead of the game. "He only scored with a free-kick and a penalty. He benefited from favourable circumstances.
"It's certain that he likes the matches against us. But if we had to consider an anti-Ibrahimovic plan, we could also imagine an anti-Pogba plan. With Manchester, the danger comes from everywhere.
"There is no need for hyper motivation. We have a huge but not insurmountable handicap. We will play in another big atmosphere. The stadium will be full. In a game, anything can happen.
"We need a great start. We will have chances like in the first leg but this time we will have to convert them."
No other team in Europe has been punished more often by Ibrahimovic, whose St Etienne haul includes three hat-tricks, but midfielder Romain Hamouma struck the bullish tone of his manager when facing the media.
"Ibrahimovic's statistics against us are outstanding, he is a great player," Hamouma said. "However, we cannot be obsessed by just one player."
Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho has challenged his players to go all the way in the competition but has warned against complacency.
"It's a good result from the first leg," he said. "But it's not over. They dream, they're strong at home, they have a big support. It's a bad pitch which doesn't help us so it's not easy. We have a job to do and we have to come with a strong team."
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